How to Assign Multiple Users to a Department

Administrators

When you need to assign many users to a department at once, SETWorks provides a department-first workflow through Department Maintenance. Rather than updating each user's department assignments one at a time, you open the department and manage all of its users from a single dialog — making it faster to onboard new staff, reorganize teams, or bring a department's roster up to date. This approach is especially useful for organizations with a large number of users.

ℹ️ Terminology can be modified within SETWorks to better fit the needs of your organization. If the terminology in our articles are not the same on your site, talk to your local administrator to assist in translation.

You must have administrator access to the Settings area. The users you want to assign must already have accounts in SETWorks. To create new users, see User Maintenance.

1. Navigate to Department Maintenance in Settings.
   1. Click the Settings gear icon (⚙) in the bottom-left corner of the navigation menu. Then select the Department Maintenance tab at the top of the Settings page. The page displays a list of all departments in your organization, each showing its Name, Code, Status, and Department Type.
2. Click Edit Department Users for the department you want to update.
   1. Locate the department you want to manage. Click the Edit Department Users button on that department's row. This opens the Edit users in department dialog for that department.
3. Add users to the department.
   1. The dialog shows two panels: All Users on the left (users not currently in this department) and Department Users on the right (users currently assigned). Drag one or more rows from All Users into Department Users to assign them. Use the checkboxes to select multiple users before dragging. The Department Users panel includes a Search field to help you find specific users already in the department.
4. Remove users from the department.
   1. To remove a user, drag their row from Department Users back to All Users.
5. Save your changes.
   1. Click Save to apply the updated user assignments. Click Cancel to close the dialog without making changes.

Note: This dialog manages department-to-user assignments for one department at a time. To assign a single user to multiple departments instead, use the Edit Departments option under Settings → User Maintenance → Actions.

What's the difference between Edit Department Users and Edit Departments (under User Maintenance)?
They manage the same relationship from opposite directions. Edit Department Users (Department Maintenance) lets you assign many users to one department at once — useful for bulk updates. Edit Departments (User Maintenance → Actions) lets you assign many departments to one user at a time — useful when onboarding an individual.

Can I select all users at once?
Use the checkbox in the column header of the All Users panel to select all users on the current page, then drag them over. For lists spanning multiple pages, repeat across each page.

Does the Department Users panel show paginated results?
Yes — the Department Users panel paginates in groups of 10. Use the page controls at the bottom or the Search field to locate specific users already assigned to the department.

Why is a user not showing up in the All Users panel?
The user may already be assigned to this department (check the Department Users panel) or may not have an active SETWorks account. You can also check and manage user accounts under Settings → User Maintenance.

Will removing a user from a department delete their records?
No. Removing a user from a department only changes their access going forward. Existing records they created under that department are not affected.